Yesterday we met Nathan Thompson, the artisan crafting drinks at Nobuo at Teeter House. Today he shares with us the recipe for an as-yet-unnamed drink that will be appearing on the cocktail menu later this month. It's a liquor-heavy cocktail made with shochu, a drink related to sake, though while sake is brewed, shochu is distilled.
"It's garnished with fresh strawberry from California -- we get them from a Japanese farmer out there -- and Shiso leaf, which is kind of like Japanese mint," Thompson says. "The shiso and the strawberry are more for aromatics. If you get your nose down in there and breathe in while you're drinking, that's going to change the profile. It's a pretty spirit-driven cocktail, but the aromatics definitely enhance it."
The ingredients:
1 oz. potato Shochu
2 oz. vodka
2 dashes Angostura bitters
Splash simple syrup
½ oz. Cointreau
Strawberry and shiso leaf
How to make it:
Mix the liquid ingredients in an ice-filled shaker. Stir well. Strain and pour over fresh ice to allow the drink to slowly dilute. Garnish with half a strawberry and one shiso leaf. Kampai!
